Headlines       Vol. 2 Issue 1-2

May 7- May 21 , 1999

Lachit Barphukan remembered The greatest Assamese warrior, Lachit Barphukan, who defeated the Mughals in the historic battle of Saraighat in April 1672, was fondly remembered by a host of dignitaries at an impressive function in Delhi recently. Vice-President Krishan Kant led the nation in recalling the heroic deeds of Ahom's Army General. Mr. Krishan Kant said that Lachit Barphukan, who repulsed the Mughal attacks, must be given his place of pride as a national hero. The function was organised by the Assam Foundation.“For the sheer quality of his sacrifice for his motherland, he will rank among the greatest in the world;” the Vice-President said. Recalling the incident which is part of both Assam's history and folklore, when Lachit Barphukan, the Army General of Ahom king Chakradhwaj Singha had beheaded his maternal uncle for dereliction of duty while preparing to face the Mughal, Mr. Krishan Kant said, “His execution of his own uncle for not showing sufficient dedication to the war effort was not just an act of impulse but a reminder to his soldiers that in the service of one's country, it is not possible to adopt double standards of judgement.” Assam Governor Lt.Gen. (Retd.) S. K. Sinha was more forthright in his remarks. He started his speech by making the sensational observation, “... historians have neglected Assam but history has not. Our history text books give details of the Indus Valley civilisation, the Ganges Valley civilisation and the Cauvery Valley civilisation, but they hardly mention the Brahmaputra Valley civilisation, when the history of Assam is unique. Unlike other Indian states, Assam did not succumb to the invasions of Delhi Sultans of Mughal Emperors.” Talking about the achievements of Assam, the Governor said ,”During the medieval period, Assam was one and the only State of India which kept the successors of these conquerors at bay. No doubt the geographical remoteness of Assam helped the Assamese in beating back seventeen invasions, starting from the invasion of Bakhtiar Khilji.” Talking about the warrior, Lt. Gen. Sinha said, “Lachit Barphukan was a military leader in the mould of Rana Pratap and Shivaji. All three fought against Mughal imperialism. While Rana Pratap's forte was burning patriotism, Shivaji and Lachit Barphukan demonstrated outstanding military skills. They were near contemporaries. One thwarted the Mughal expansion in the south and the other did so in the east. Some Mughal leaders like Shiasta Khan and Raja Ram Singh interacted with both Shivaji and Lachit Barphukan. The fact that Rana Pratap and Shivaji are household names throughout our country and Lachit Barphukan is hardly known outside Assam shows the neglect of Assam by historians.” Recalling Lachit Barphukan's first success against the Mughal, the Governor said, “Apart from being the headquarters of the Mughal Governor in occupied Ahom territory, Guwahati had great strategic importance. The Brahmaputra between Kamakhya and Saraighat is the narrowest at Guwahati and there are hills on both banks of the river in this area. The area was densely forested and road communications were very poor. Brahmaputra waterway was the most important line of communication. A large army moving in this region had to make use of the Brahmaputra waterway. Lachit first struck at Bargoda fort at the junction of Bar Nadi and the Brahmaputra. The Mughal garrision was driven out from this fort and their counterattacks defeated. The Mughal reserves came up to the North bank and prevented further Ahom advance but could not dislodge them from Bargoda. Lachit Barphukan now shifted his attention to Sukreswar hill on the south bank where the Mughals had a fort, which was also the headquarters of the Mughul Governor. Ahom commandos managed to infiltrate the fort and neutralised the cannons by pouring water through their mouths and over their stock of gunpowder. This was followed by a heavy cannonade by the Ahoms and a determined assult of the fort. Sayed Firoz Khan, the governor, was taken a prisoner. The Mughals abandoned Guwahati. Lachit Barphukan now advanced down the Brahmaputra to Manas recovering all the Ahom territory ceded to Mir Jumla. A stone victory pillar in the Guwahati museum has an inscription in Sanskrit praising Lachit Barphukan for his great victory against the Mughals.” The Governor also gave a vivid description of the famous Saraighat battle and how Lachit Barphukan prepared his forces to take on the mighty Mughals. Talking about the heroics of Lachit Barphukan, the Assam Governor said, “Shivaji introduced a new concept of insurgency warfare which was refined in the 20th century by Mao-Tse Tung and Ho-Chi-Min. Lachit Barphukan demonstrated how through elaborate prepraration and use of terrain, a weaker army can defeat a superior army. He also showed exemplary loyalty to his king and outstanding leadership in the battle. Assam Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta almost echoed the views of the Governor. Lamenting over the fact that Assam still remains less known, less understood for people outside the State, Mr. Mahanta said,” Assam is a very ancient land with distinct culture and civilisation of its own. If properly studied and understood, it will be an object of amazement, admiration and inspiration for the entire Indian nation. The history of Assam tells us that the most striking feature of the people of Assam is their intense love of freedom and self-respect.” “The evolution of history and civilisation in Assan is marked by her people's unique traits of liberalism and assimilation. Although it is located in the remote North-Eastern region, the people, over all the past centuries, have accepted unhesitatingly all the good things that the Aryan civilisation of the Gangetic valley had to offer. Open-mindedness has brought Assam to the cultural hegemony of India without, of course, making her lose her own distinct traits and characteristics. The people living in other parts of the country have many things to learn from the redeeming elements of the history and civilisation of Assam that sprang up on the banks of the Brahmaputra. This will help each other in knowing intimately thereby strengthening of our national integration. The bravery and patriotism of Lachit Barphukan can definitely make every Indian feel proud of, “ the Chief Minister said. Assam Assembly Speaker and chairman of the Assam Foundation Ganesh Kutum finds a similarity between Lachit Barphukan and Gopinath Bardoloi. Mr. Kutum said, “Lachit Barphukan and Gopinath Bardoloi lived on either side of three centuries in very different times, fighting in different ways, different foes. One fought his enemies militarily, with bravery and personal leadership, the other fought them with political strategy and foresight. Both contributed to an independent nation.” Meanwhile Indian Army has agreed in principle to institute a Lachit Barphukan Prize at the National Defence Academy.

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